Dog Dies After Being Left in A Drying Cage at Petco

It’s every owner’s nightmare. You leave your dog in the care of a trained professional and something terrible happens. One dog owner in Virginia is considering legal action against the large chain pet retailer Petco for that very reason. She says that her Golden Retriever died while in the care of one of their stores grooming services.

Allison Marks spoke with worldwide media giants like ABC News to report the tragic event. She says that she left her 2 year old Golden Retriever, Colby, at a Petco store in Midlothian, Virginia early in the morning on May 29, 2015 and was told that she would be able to pick him up by noon the same day after his grooming treatments were completed.

Marks began to worry as it became later in the day and decided to call the store when she hadn’t heard anything by 1 p.m. She was told to go to a local animal clinic. She said that no one would inform her of what happened, just that the store manager would meet her there. Terrified, Marks walked into the clinic completely blind to situation.

Photo: Allison Marks

She says that as she walked in she could see her beloved dog lying on the veterinarian’s table with glazed eyes. She knew he was gone. The assistant manager of the Petco store simply told her that he was in the drying unit when they found him. The vet told her that Colby had been dead for at least 45 minutes and his temperature was still at 105 degrees.

The veterinarian on duty explained to Marks that the dog’s death was most likely caused by severe heat stroke. Marks said that the only explanation given by the assistant manager was that the groomer who was tending to Colby had left early to go to a graduation.

Marks’ is unsure whether Colby’s care was turned over to another groomer or if they just completely forgot that he was in the drying unit. Marks says that because Colby had high anxiety she used to walk him out back herself whenever she dropped him off at the groomers, so she knows that people have to walk by the drying units regularly to get to the rest of the equipment.

Petco has released a statement saying that the company accepts full responsibility for animals that are under their care, and they are taking immediate action to investigate the incident that occurred with Colby. The statement also says that pet safety is the main priority for the company and that their thoughts are with Marks during this difficult time.

Samantha’s biggest passion in life is spending time with her Boxer dogs. After she rescued her first Boxer in 2004, Samantha fell in love with the breed and has continued to rescue three other Boxers since then. She enjoys hiking and swimming with her Boxers, Maddie and Chloe.

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